The Florida Marlins and right-hander Ricky Nolasco have arrived at a stalemate in negotiations for a long-term contract, major league sources told FOXSports.com.

The impasse sets up a number of possibilities for Nolasco, who was 14-9 with a 4.51 ERA in 26 starts this year:

— The Marlins and Nolasco agree on a one-year deal

Nolasco, 28, is still in his salary-arbitration years, so the Marlins could simply allow that process to play out and retain his rights through 2012. He’s due to receive a raise on the $3.8 million he earned this year.

— The sides compromise and sign a long-term pact

There is still plenty of time for the parties to reach agreement. They have been exchanging three-year proposals, sources say.

— The Marlins trade Nolasco

Florida could deal Nolasco and still have a formidable five-man rotation: Josh Johnson, Anibal Sanchez, Javier Vazquez, Chris Volstad and Alex Sanabia, who had a 3.73 ERA in 15 games (12 starts) as a rookie this year.

Clubs have been calling the Marlins in recent days to express interest in Nolasco, sources said. While it’s not clear which teams have contacted the Marlins, it’s well-established that the New York Yankees, Milwaukee Brewers and Washington Nationals have been active in the trade market for starting pitchers.

The Yankees, searching for bench help, have spoken with the Astros about infielder Jeff Keppinger, according to major league sources.

A trade does not appear close, but the teams have engaged in recent discussions, one source said.

The Astros increased the possibility of trading Keppinger on Friday by reaching agreement with free agent Bill Hall on a one-year contract to play second base.

The Yankees had shown interest in Hall, but Keppinger, who stands to receive a raise from his $1.15 million in his second year of arbitration, could fill a similar role.

Keppinger, 30, was the Astros’ primary second baseman last season. He can back up at all four infield positions and also has made five career appearances in the outfield.

The Astros likely would ask for no more than a mid-level prospect in return, especially now that Keppinger has lost his everyday job.

Keppinger batted .288 with a .351 on-base percentage and .393 slugging average last season, with six home runs and 59 RBI in 575 plate appearances. He lacks speed and power, but was the most difficult player to strike out in the majors last season.

The Detroit Tigers’ everyday lineup looks complete, now that they have agreed to a one-year contract with outfielder Magglio Ordoñez.

But they are still trying to upgrade their starting rotation, major league sources told FOXSports.com.

The Tigers are examining veteran options for the fifth-starter spot and have shown interest in free agent Brad Penny, sources said.

Penny went 3-4 with a 3.23 ERA in nine starts with the St. Louis Cardinals this year. He was placed on the disabled list with an upper back strain in May missed the rest of the season.

Tigers club president and general manager Dave Dombrowski acquired Penny once before – in a 1999 trade, when Dombrowski was GM of the Florida Marlins.

Penny had a 5.61 ERA in 24 starts with the Boston Red Sox in 2009, his only stint with an American League team to date. But it’s easier to pitch in the AL Central than the AL East.

If the season began today, the Tigers would have Phil Coke, a converted reliever, and Armando Galarraga in their final two rotation spots. That could put the bullpen in a position to work extensively on back-to-back days. Coke is coming off a season in which he threw 64 2/3 innings, and Galarraga tends to run up high pitch counts.

Sources say the Tigers also made a push to acquire Shaun Marcum from the Toronto Blue Jays before he was dealt to Milwaukee. But the Tigers don’t appear to be a serious suitor for Carl Pavano, who is regarded as the best starter still available on the free-agent market.

Ryan Harvey, a first-round draft pick of the Chicago Cubs in 2003, has signed a minor league contract with the Boston Red Sox, major league sources told FOXSports.com.

But this isn’t a simple story of a former top prospect getting a second chance. He’s changing his career path entirely.

Harvey, 26, had a .244 batting average in eight seasons as a minor league outfielder but never reached higher than Double-A. So, he’s putting the bat aside in an attempt to revive his career as a right-handed pitcher.

It’s apparent he has a strong throwing arm. In 57 games as a right fielder this year at Double-A Tulsa, Harvey had 12 assists.

Harvey’s stock as a position player was once so high that the Cubs took him with the No. 6 overall selection. Baseball America twice rated him among the top 70 prospects in the game.

The Red Sox are encouraged enough by his potential that they invited him to a preseason camp for top prospects.

The Nationals, in serious discussions to trade outfielder Josh Willingham to the Athletics, are trying to clear money for other pursuits, major league sources say.

Among the team’s possibilities:

The acquisition of a major starting pitcher. The Nats are one of the clubs pursuing Royals ace Zack Greinke and reportedly are interested in Rays righty Matt Garza, as well. They also have been on the periphery of the bidding for free-agent right-hander Carl Pavano.

The signing of a first baseman. Adam LaRoche and Derrek Lee both are on the Nationals’ wish list. They are targets for the Orioles and Padres, as well.

The addition of a closer. Not a major area of need, but one rival general manager says he would not be surprised if the Nationals bid on free agent Rafael Soriano.

The Nats do frequent business with Soriano’s agent, Scott Boras, who represents their two most recent No. 1 draft picks — right-hander Stephen Strasburg and outfielder Bryce Harper — as well as their new centerpiece, right fielder Jayson Werth.

The addition of Soriano or another free-agent closer could give the Nats a powerhouse bullpen, with righties Drew Storen and Tyler Clippard and lefty Sean Burnett performing in setup roles.

Matt Guerrier reached agreement with the Dodgers, Jesse Crain with the White Sox.

Kerry Wood moved toward a deal with the Cubs, while Dan Wheeler was in talks with the Red Sox, according to major league sources.

The Mariners also are involved in the game of musical relievers, but with a slightly different twist.

The M’s are trying to trade closer David Aardsma, sources said, and free-agent right-hander Kevin Gregg, a native of Corvallis, Ore., is among the possible replacements.

Gregg, who went 37 for 43 in save chances with a 3.51 ERA for the Blue Jays last season, also has drawn interest from the Red Sox and Orioles, among other clubs.

Aardsma, who turns 29 on Dec. 27, had a breakthrough season in 2009, going 38 for 42 in save chances with a 2.52 ERA, but he slumped in the first half of the year, posting a 5.40 ERA before the All-Star break and a 0.84 ERA after it.

Any desire by the Mariners to move Aardsma is at least partly because of his rising salary in arbitration. He stands to earn a significant raise from $2.75 million this offseason and would be eligible for arbitration again next winter.

The M’s might prefer a more established veteran such as Gregg, particularly when they could get him at a salary comparable to Aardsma’s over a multi-year deal.

The Toronto Blue Jays are pursuing free-agent right-hander Octavio Dotel as one option to upgrade their bullpen, a major league source told FOXSports.com.

Toronto doesn’t have an experienced closer on its current roster, which enhances the appeal of the 37-year-old Dotel. He saved 21 games for the Pittsburgh Pirates this year and has 105 saves in his career.

Dotel pitched for the Pirates, Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers last season and made a total of 68 appearances – his second-highest total since 2004. He finished with a 3-4 record and 4.08 ERA.

Kevin Gregg led Toronto with 37 saves, but is currently a free agent. The Jays already lost ace setup man Scott Downs to the Los Angeles Angels, but right-hander Jason Frasor will return after accepting salary arbitration.

He’s a right-handed starter. He’s 27 years old. He pitches in the American League Central. He has garnered a lot of recent interest on the trade market.

Zack Greinke?

Nope.

Fausto Carmona.

Greinke, of course, is The Name among starters on the trade market right now. But sources indicated to FOXSports.com today that it’s possible even more teams have asked the Cleveland Indians about Carmona.

If, for example, the Yankees are unsure of Greinke’s desire to pitch in New York, then Carmona could become a very appealing option.

Similarly, the Texas Rangers could turn to Carmona if they are wary of the Kansas City Royals’ high price on Greinke.

One major league source with close knowledge of Carmona’s market said the Indians aren’t eager to move him, but are in a “listen and explore” mode because of the heavy interest following the Cliff Lee signing.

For what it’s worth, some statistics suggest Carmona was better than Greinke in 2010. Carmona had the lower ERA and better ERA-plus, although Greinke had the lower WHIP and threw more innings.

Carmona is signed to a more favorable contract, in terms of cost and flexibility: $6.1 million in 2011, followed by team options worth $7 million, $9 million and $12 million in the subsequent three seasons, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts.

Greinke, meanwhile, will earn $13.5 million in each of the next two seasons.

Carmona was a Cy Young Award candidate in 2007, when he went 19-8 with a 3.06 ERA and the Indians came within one game of the World Series. He slipped into a mysterious funk over the next two seasons, walking more batters (140 combined over 2008-09) than he struck out (137). But he returned to form this year with a 3.77 ERA in 210 1/3 innings.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are moving close to an agreement with free-agent first baseman Lyle Overbay, multiple major league sources told FOXSports.com.

Overbay, who turns 34 in January, batted .243 with 20 home runs and 67 RBI in 154 games with the Toronto Blue Jays this year.

Overbay is a better defender than Garrett Jones, the Pirates’ everyday first baseman for much of the 2010 season. If Overbay signs with Pittsburgh, then Jones would likely move into a corner outfield mix that includes Jose Tabata, Matt Diaz and possibly Ryan Doumit.

The Twins apparently want more options in their middle infield than just Alexi Casilla and Tsuyoshi Nishioka.

The team is attempting to trade for Cardinals shortstop Brendan Ryan, according to a major league source.

Ryan, 28, would give the Twins a third infielder capable of playing second and short – assuming the club signs Nishioka.

The Twins won the rights to Nishioka by posting a bid of $5.3 million. Nishioka, 26, is expected to receive a three-year deal between $9 million and $15 million. The negotiations are "progressing," according to a source with knowledge of the discussions.

Ryan is eligible for arbitration for the first time. The Cardinals began shopping him after acquiring Ryan Theriot from the Dodgers last month to be their everyday shortstop.

Defensively, Ryan is considered elite, but he slumped from a .740 OPS in 2009 to .573 in ’10 after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right wrist on Feb. 10.

Although Ryan’s greatest value is at short, he has appeared in 59 career games at second. He also played the position in college and the minors.

For all the money getting spent this offseason, deferred salary is all the rage.

Recent free-agent signings by the Dodgers, White Sox and Cubs included deferred money, and the Reds’ three-year, $35 million extension of right-hander Bronson Arroyo was particularly unique.

Arroyo will receive $6.5 million in 2011 and $7 million in ’12, according to contract information obtained by FOXSports.com. His 2013 salary is $18 million, but all but $3 million will be deferred without interest.

The players union, accounting for the deferrals, says the present-day value of Arroyo’s deal is $28.9 million. The Reds did not award Arroyo a no-trade clause, but his deferral will be voided if he is traded, meaning he would get all of his money up front.

Thus, Arroyo effectively received no-trade protection; it’s extremely doubtful any club would be willing to pay him in $18 million in ’13. He also will gain the right to block any deal next season as a player with 10 years of major league service, five with the same club.

Arroyo, 33, accepted the deferrals because of his desire to stay in Cincinnati, according to a source close to him. He and former Reds right-hander Aaron Harang also restructured their contracts before the start of last season, giving the club additional financial flexibility, a second source said.

Third baseman Scott Rolen did the same thing when he signed a two-year, $13 million extension in December 2009. Right fielder Jay Bruce’s new six-year, $51 million contract does not include deferrals, the second source said.

Bruce’s terms are similar to those the Diamondbacks awarded right fielder Justin Upton last March, but actually amount to a better deal for the club.

Bruce’s contract includes four arbitration years and two free-agent years. Upton's deal covers a less lucrative time frame - his final non-arbitration year, plus three arbitration years and two free-agent years.